The Savenac Tree Nursery during operating years.
Photo courtesy U.S. Forest Service Northern Region/Wikimedia | CC BY 2.0
Established in 1908 by Elers Koch, the Assistant Regional Forester in the Northern Region, Savenac Historic Tree Nursery, near Haugan, Montana, is one of the oldest Forest Service nurseries and a pioneer in nursery research and development. One of Koch’s greatest joys in life was planting seeds, so it should not come as a surprise that by the mid-1930s, the nursery was the biggest supplier of tree seedlings in the United States. Although operations ceased in 1969, the facilities are maintained by the Forest Service and now serve as an educational resource for visitors. Additionally, many of the techniques developed at the nursery, such as using “shingle tow” (shredded sawdust) instead of moss to keep seedlings moist and burlap sacks instead of wooden crates for tree bales when shipping, are still used widely throughout the industry today.
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